Jia Bing is a well-respected performer in the Jin Opera industry. In his more than 70 years of art career, his artistic career is closely linked with the development of Jin Opera. His drumming skills have a solid foundation, broad play paths, steady and vigorous play in literary play, lively and free play in martial arts, and passionate and infectious accompaniment. Jia Bingzheng began to study art at the age of 15. He used to play drums for famous masters such as Ding Guoxian, Cheng Yuying, Wang Wanmei, Wang Aai, and Cheng Lingxian. In 1953, Jia Bingzheng joined the Jin Opera Troupe (now Jinzhong Jin Opera Troupe) in Yuci Special Area. He has made an important contribution to the development of percussion music in Shanxi Opera with his unique artistic style.

1. The art of performing well

Jia Bingzheng grew up in a theater since he was a child. Taking advantage of his father's work in the theater, he often went to the backstage to watch the performances of the masters in the martial arts field. After careful observation, he found that there is a master in the band whose status is different from that of the musicians such as horse gongs, hinges, cymbals, and bangzi. The young Jia Bingzheng did not know the role of the drum, nor did he know the technical terms such as gestures and horns, but he wanted to play the drum. For a long time, he silently memorized the various musical instrument combinations in the martial arts field and memorized many brief gongs and drums.
In the old opera troupe, the method for the master to teach his apprentice skills was oral teaching. At that time, famous theaters in Taiyuan, such as Xinmin Theater and Xinhua Theater, gathered masters from Zhonglu Bangzi Wenwuchang. There were master Mantang who played the drum, Master Youhan who played the cymbal, Master Wanjin who played the huqin and Runsheng who beat the horse gong. master. In order to learn more playing methods from the seniors, Jia Bingzheng often runs errands for the masters of the martial arts band. After a long time, the masters see that Jia Bing is a diligent and studious child, and teach him some simple drumming in his spare time. Skill. From then on, whenever the gong was played in the theater, he would squat next to the drummer, staring at the drum sign, watching the striking position, observing the gestures, memorizing the changes in rhythm and signing, and picking up his drum when he got home Practice and consolidate the sign, and keep in mind the gongs and drums that you have learned.
In addition to being immersed in the theater to watch the masters play, the young Jia Bingzheng often goes to the fans of Jin opera to exercise. In some unimportant scenes or when the musicians were resting, he took the initiative to ask to play a few times for the masters. Although it was an inconspicuous short segment, it was a rare opportunity for Jia Bingzheng. Under the inadvertent teaching and guidance of the theater masters and the encouragement and support of fans, Jia Bingzheng continued to practice hard, laying a certain foundation for the formal apprenticeship in the future.
In 1946, Jia Bingzheng entered the "renaissance stage", officially worshipped Wang Desheng as his master, and began to embark on the road of percussion. Under the strict requirements of Master Wang, Jia Bingzheng has truly achieved the practice of "practicing three-fu in summer and three-nine in winter", and has mastered the iron sign skill. This makes his hands very flexible in the accompaniment of the performance, and he will not be sluggish when playing for several hours. one time. Later, the social situation was turbulent, and the troupe was temporarily disbanded. During this period, Jia Bingzheng often went to Taiyuan Xinhua Theater to learn the skills of master Shen Tianfu playing the drum. Master Shen used different techniques in the drama of the talented and beautiful woman and the drama of the emperor and general. For small furniture, the sign is light and playful, delicate and delicate, and for large furniture, the sign is firm and steady, cadence, rhythm and rhythm. Master Shen's performance is coordinated with both hands, the density is moderate, and the weight is appropriate. Jia Bingzheng carefully studied these characteristics of Master Shen Tianfu and integrated his techniques into his own drum performance. At the same time, Jia Bingzheng also accompanies the famous pianists Liu Genxu, Liu Zhu, Chang Guoji, Qin Liang, etc., and learns many techniques and styles of accompaniment in the field.
In April 1949, after Master Wang Desheng went south with the "July Opera Club", Jia Bingzheng became the drummer of the troupe. The drum and board accompaniment of the civil and military opera gave Jia Bingzheng a good workout during this period. During the provincial opera performance in 1954, Jia Bingzheng realized that the problem of the number was a "stumbling block" that restricted his development. After the guidance of the masters, he found Master Zhao Tingjie (Master Runsheng) to ask for the problem of the number. Under the hands-on guidance of Master Runsheng, Jia Bingzheng had a correct understanding of the number and learned a lot of stunts. Master Runsheng also taught him some soon-to-be-lost percussion techniques, making him continue to improve his performance art.
Under the guidance of many masters and his own continuous efforts, Jia Bing has become more and more mature in playing the drum. On the basis of inheriting the tradition, he continued to explore and innovate the percussion of Jin Opera. For example, the opening song of "The Godson" does not exist in the old "Godson". In order to match Wang Chun'e's performance and reflect her tragic life experience, Jia Bingzheng designed the traditional "Xiao Wu Ku Acacia" as the basis to add string accompaniment, and then followed the song "Falling Money". This reform not only avoided the monotonous suddenness of the tune , and for the character singing to set off the atmosphere. After many years of practice, this method of playing has been preserved to this day.

Spectrum Example 1
In Jia Bingzheng's drum playing career, on the basis of absorbing the performance techniques of famous masters, he always adhered to the principle of maintaining the style of Jin opera to create and play, and cooperated tacitly with the actors' singing and performances. , angular, strong and weak, accurate. The rhythm of his paddrum is tight but not hairy, slow but not rhythmic, and the changes in priorities are just right. His performance is close to the singing, the sound is appropriate, always embodies the word "accompany", and never overwhelms the guest.

2. Innovative notation notation

(1) Standardize the method of signing the drum
It is often said that "banyan is also red and black", that is, "eye rises and falls" is equivalent to "black rises and red falls". Jinju Wuchang percussion instruments are divided into two categories: "red furniture" and "black furniture". In actual performance, musical instruments used in strong positions such as horse gongs, hinges, and clappers are called "red furniture", while those used in weak positions such as cymbals and hand gongs are called "black furniture". The drum board is neither "red furniture" nor "black furniture", it is a conducting instrument in stage music. When the drummer supports the sign to play the board drum, the two signs and the red and black positions of the notes form a certain relationship. This relationship is called the "drum board sign method".
For a long time, Jin Opera martial arts field has formed a variety of drum pad "drawing methods" by relying on the teaching method of the teacher-inherited relationship, and some of the drawing methods are not ideal in actual performance. As a drummer, Jia Bingzheng has been constantly exploring the road of standardizing drum board signing and realizing the standardization of conductors. On the basis of the predecessor drummers, he has further refined and refined, so that the orchestra conductor is in an orderly manner and the performance effect is guaranteed.
Jia Bingzheng's standard signing method, that is, the right sign holds the red position and the left sign holds the black position, also known as "positive sign" or "forehand sign", is established according to the natural physiological laws of the human body and the requirements of practical applications. . When people hit the board drum with two drum sticks in their hands, the strength of most people's hands is strong on the right and weak on the left, so hitting the right hand in the strong beat position conforms to the law of strength and weakness of music. The drumming of the right sign is "beat", and the drumming of the left sign is "ba". The clear division of labor of the left and right signs is used to enlighten the red and black furniture and the strong and weak positions, so that various pads are smooth and smooth, which perfectly matches the actor's performance. And the rendering of the stage atmosphere.
(2) Creation of Models and Gesture Labels
In the actual performance of Jinju Wenwuchang, in addition to using the standard signing method, as the conductor of the orchestra, the ability to master is to accurately show gestures. Jia Bingzheng's gestures are "fanzi". "Fanzi" is a "measuring gesture" that the drummer inspires the "opening" amplitude and striking strength of the musical instrument. It is composed of the movement of the hand and the arm. Jia Bingzheng created four types of three-level model labels, which are represented by arrow symbols, which are double-signed tails ( ), indicating that both hands start the model together; the sign tail is to the right ( ), indicating that the right hand starts the model; the sign tail is left ( ) , which means the left hand starts the model; no tail ( ), means the hand starts the model.
Drummers often say that "gesture" is a "silent pre-order". Jia Bingzheng's gesture label consists of three parts: the head, the stick and the tail. There are four kinds of signs at the head of the sign. Or falsely drag "△", press "▲" when the sign is dropped, and rub the sign against the drum surface from under the right flank " ". There are 28 types of gesture labels, including left-hand gestures, right-hand gestures, and two-hand gestures.

Score example 2 left hand gesture
The gesture of "exaggerating general" means that when Fan Zi is about to strike with the right sign, the back of his left hand is up, and the tail of the sign is swiped to the upper left, suddenly from dumb furniture to "five hard hammers". Various "dumb furniture praise generals" music expresses the indecision and dilemma of the characters, and in "hard five hammer praise generals", it expresses a desperate situation and an open mind.

Example 3 Right hand gesture
The gestures "snap in" and "snap out" are used when the music atmosphere is hot, the speed is fast and the rhythm is strong. At the third measure, the left sign is stagnating, the right sign is on the black position (weak position) on the next beat and slams in, and after the sharp closing, the red position (strong position) on the next beat is empty and slams to the drum Pick it up, still in the red position, and then rush to the black position in the second half of the shot.

Example 4 Hand Gestures
As shown in the music example, the "Old Eight Hammer" gesture is in the second measure, the back of both hands is raised, the wrist is hooked down, and the drum stick is planted to the heart of the drum, which is the pre-order of "Old Eight Hammer". Put the empty shot after the lead hammer, and then pick up the old eight hammer behind. The gesture used for the empty beat in the second half of the fourth measure is the "banyueer" gesture. The two signs slowly slide parallel to both sides from the heart of the drum. After the double sign rolls, it slowly leaves the drum surface to the left and right sides, which is equivalent to The sub is drawn, and then the drums are not struck for the next two bars.
Based on years of stage practice experience, Jia Bingzheng has continuously explored a set of clearly marked and vivid notation of plate drum gestures, standardizing the performance of Jin Opera civil and military fields, and playing the role of commanding the orchestra, dispatching the entire stage, grasping the rhythm, and leading the beginning and the end of the opera. The central role of the band.

3. Eclectic inheritance teaching

(1) Teaching from master to apprentice
In the early 1960s, under the call of the policy and organized by the Jinzhong Jin Opera Troupe, seven people established a mentoring relationship with Jia Bingzheng. They were Hu Wanjun, Feng Renying, Zhao Jiuning, Dong Jingguo, Song Laixiang, Li Yongan and Wang Chengxiu. This is Jia Bingzheng's first. A group of apprentices. Based on the foundation of each apprentice, Jia Bingzheng conducts targeted and strict training. He teaches by words and deeds in the singing and recitation of drum scores, the use of fortune-telling, and the changes in gestures, and is dedicated to cultivating outstanding Jin opera drummers.
(2) Social teaching
In the early 1970s, Jia Bingzheng left the band in order to give his apprentices more opportunities to practice. Just in time for the Jinzhong Jin Opera Troupe to open a training class, the troupe assigned Jia Bingzheng to serve as an opera music teacher. There were more than 80 students and teachers in the training class. Literary successor. In his spare time, Jia Bingzheng also went to Taiyuan, Taigu, Yangquan and other places uninterruptedly to provide on-site counseling for Shanxi opera percussion enthusiasts, and spared no effort to do his best for the dissemination and development of Shanxi opera.
(3) School teaching
In 1975, Jinzhong Art School was established, and Jia Bingzheng was hired to teach performance skills to students and students studying Jinju Opera. During his time at the art school, Jia Bingzheng taught students according to their aptitude, and let the actors who were already well-known at the time learn the drum, take percussion lessons, and constantly experience the relationship between the characters and the accompaniment; for the younger students, starting from the initial signing practice, even the After the students played the music according to the score, he still had to go to the trouble of explaining it. He required the students not only to have a solid theory, but also to have a thorough understanding of this knowledge in order to be able to use it flexibly and freely.
For decades, Jia Bingzheng has taught his lifelong drumming skills and stage experience to many apprentices and Jin opera percussion enthusiasts. Regardless of age and occupation, he is obliged to perform for the majority of fans and friends. He has given all he can to patiently give pointers, and his art and morality have been recognized and praised by all sectors of society.

Epilogue

From "Percussion Music of Jin Opera" to "Traditional Gong and Drum Score of Jin Opera", Jia Bingzheng has spent more than 30 years in pursuit of the art of Jin Opera board and drum, and has made pioneering explorations for the systematic study of gong and drum score. "Devotion of art is required, hard work is pursued" is a true portrayal of Jia Bingzheng's life as a drum player. In his old age, he used the drum to play an inspiring strong tone of the era.